The Secret Behind USC Freshmen Taking Over Spring Practice

When USC hired general manager Chad Bowden last offseason, he implemented one major recruiting rule. Once a recruit commits, they’re not allowed to visit any other school, no exceptions.

A commitment means exactly that, a commitment. It was a necessary strategy and one the Trojans freshman class embraced.

Getting a Head Start in the Program

USC Trojans Lincoln Riley Chad Bowden Spring Practice Visit Jonas Williams Elbert Hill Mark Bowman Madden Riordan Recruit — Oct 21, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley watches from the sidelines against the Utah Utes in the first half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Instead of taking visits elsewhere, the freshman class took the opportunity to become frequent visitors on campus to get acclimated to life at USC and bond as a class.

Everything since Bowden arrived has been very strategic. All in effort to make sure their freshman class was ready to hit the ground running by the time they arrived on campus.

Quarterback Jonas Williams is from Illinois and was in town last February for Junior Day, which led to him flipping his commitment from Oregon. Williams was back on campus in the spring.

He spent several weeks in Los Angeles in the summer, to actively recruit someone like four-star receiver Boobie Feaster one weekend, his own official visit the following weekend and then the Elite 11 Finals the following week. During that time, he was able to workout with a pair of local pass-catchers in tight end Mark Bowman and receiver Tron Baker.

Bowman was one of the prized recruits in the class. USC once felt like a long shot but were able to land a commitment from him before official visit season. The Mater Dei (Calif.) five-star prospect was at every home game in the fall, other than USC’s Friday night game against Northwestern in early November.

When the Trojans began spring practice last year, Bowman’s high school teammate, defensive lineman Tomuhini Topui, made the short trip a couple of times. He then flipped his commitment from Oregon in early April and was essentially at USC’s practice almost every day. Topui played his high school football less than hour away.

USC began taking advantage of having an abundance of top prospects within a close proximity of campus by inviting them to continuously come to practice or visit the facility.

Defensive back Madden Riordan was one of the Trojans first commits in the 2026 cycle, when he announced his pledge during the fall of his sophomore year and never wavered from that pledge. Between games and practices, Riordan had been at USC over 40 times before enrolling. He and his Sierra Canyon (Calif.) teammates, cornerback Brandon Lockhart, were incredibly active when it came to recruiting other local prospects to join them.

Cornerback Elbert “Rock” Hill is another player that comes from the Midwest. The Ohio native made the trip out to Los Angeles three times before he committed last May. In addition to his official visit, Hill was back another weekend in June and spent time around USC legendary safety Ronnie Lott. The following week he worked out in front of the coaches at one of the programs summer camps.

Hill and five-star defensive tackle Jaimeon Winfield were at the Coliseum three times in the fall. Hill and other defensive back commits would be involved in the huddle with the rest of the position during pregame speeches from cornerbacks coach Trovon Reed.

USC saw a large number of its commits flock to the Coliseum on Saturdays in the fall. Every week was a chance for them to incorporate themselves into the program and get to know each other, as well as their future teammates. Continue those bonds that began in the spring and summer.

There was a high level of comfortably for USC’s No. 1 recruiting class with the program before they actually strapped on a helmet this spring, which has allowed their talent to flourish.

And with three rounds of workouts and meetings and spring practice with the team before fall camp, the idea is that the freshman no longer feels like freshman when the 2026 campaign begins.

Boobie Feaster to Enroll in the Summer

Feaster, the No. 40 overall prospect and No. 4 receiver, per the 247Sports Composite Rankings, is set to enroll in the summer. The Lone Star State native is set to play his freshman year at 17 years old after reclassifying.

Feaster has been on campus at least twice this spring that we know of. Once during winter workouts and once during the first week of spring practice. And with Feaster enrolling in a couple of months, Southern Cal is very likely to bring him out to Los Angeles again before that happens.

Feaster may not be able to vote during his freshman year, but he can help contribute immediately and USC is making sure he is well-prepared when he does arrive.

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